Chinese mythical creature appears in Hollywood fantasy film

BEIJING, Dec. 6, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report by China.org.cn on a Chinese mythical creature named Zouwu:

Written by J.K. Rowling, the Hollywood blockbuster "Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald" was recently released worldwide. Compared to the first installment of the franchise, Rowling's 2018 sequel introduces many new fantastic beasts, among which a Chinese mythical creature named Zouwu has captured the hearts of most filmgoers.

Zouwu has a cat face, tiger body, five-colored long tail, sharp claws and teeth, making it irresistible and destructive wherever it goes. However, when the hero, Newt Scamander, appears and waves a fluffy toy, this ferocious beast can immediately be captured to become a cute "big-eyed cat" with a happily-wagging tail.

This dual character has received rave reviews from fans around the world. An article on the USA Today website claimed Zouwu was "the best new fantastic beast" that made the film so successful.

Zouwu is a creature in ancient Chinese mythology. It first appeared in the Book of Mountains and Seas (Shan Hai Jing), a work of folk geography in ancient China. The book states: "There is a rare creature in Lin's country which is tiger-sized with a five-colored striped body and with the tail longer than the body. Called Zouwu, this creature is capable of travelling 1,000 miles in a day."

In many ancient painters' works, Zouwu was also portrayed as a horse-like animal. However, nowadays, many people believe the most likely realistic prototype of Zouwu is a snow leopard.

It is this ancient Chinese mythology written thousands of years ago that provided fresh inspiration to J.K. Rowling. In her interpretation, Zouwu is a terrifying beast that can be captured by nobody but Newt.

Actually, Zouwu is not the first Chinese mythical creature to appear in Rowling's books. Other such strange beasts populating her world of wizardry include "Chinese Fireball," Abominable Snowman and Fawkes, a pet phoenix of Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of Hogwarts School. These "fantastic beasts" are the embodiment of both human imagination and respect for nature.

Ancient Chinese mythology highly valued moral integrity. For example, in Chinese culture, Zouwu is a beast of kindness, which only eats already dead-animals, never killing them itself. Kylin was said to have the ability to distinguish between good and bad people; and the phoenix was a symbol of peace and order. These mythical creatures reflect Chinese people's emphasis on lofty morality and warnings about human weakness.

With growing cultural exchanges between China and other countries, we hope that Chinese culture can offer more inspiration and that more Chinese "fantastic beasts" can become known by the outside world.

China Mosaic
http://www.china.org.cn/video/node_7230027.htm

Chinese mythical creature appears in Hollywood fantasy film
http://www.china.org.cn/video/2018-12/06/content_74246298.htm

About China.org.cn

Founded in 2000, China Internet Information Center (China.org.cn/China.com.cn) is a key state news website under the auspices of the State Council Information Office, and is managed by China International Publishing Group. We provide round-the-clock news service in ten languages. With users from more than 200 countries and regions, we have become China's leading multi-lingual news outlet introducing the country to the outside world.

We are one of the country's authoritative outlets for government press releases and are authorized to cover various major events. "Live Webcast" is our online webcasting service to present State Council Information Office press conferences in both Chinese and English languages. We are reputed for timely and accurate delivery of news and information, and wide interactions with audiences. In addition, we are authorized to publish and live broadcast major events and press conferences of ministries, local government agencies and institutions as well as enterprises.

In the era of mobile internet, we endeavor to create an array of products for mobile devices headed by the multilingual WAP platform and the mobile APP. We also use Chinese and international social media to publish information for different user groups.

In the future, CIIC will continue to offer authoritative information about China, tell China's stories, voice China's opinions, and introduce a vivid, panoramic and multicultural China to the world through multi-language, multi-media and multi-platforms.

SOURCE China.org.cn