Wisdom Quarterly: China's "Father Nature" and California's Yeti

Monday, June 27, 2011

China's "Father Nature" and California's Yeti

Shen Nung, Viharnra Sien (วิหารเซียน), Chinese-Thai community, Thailand (Clay Irving)

The sign next to the statute reads: "Shen Nung - The First Farmer and Founder of Natural Mad" (Med/Ag, medicine and agriculture?)

Shen Nung (also Shennong) is also known as the Emperor of the Five Grains and the Father of Chinese (Herbal) Medicine. He was a ruler of China and cultural hero who is reputed to have lived 5,000 years ago. He taught the ancient Chinese people the practices of agriculture. Appropriately, his name means "the Divine Farmer." The demigod (human-deva hybrid) Shen Nung taught his people how to cultivate grain as food so they could avoid killing animals and living like ogres, who lust for blood. By choosing plants -- as if to say "I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole Earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it; they will be yours for food" (Gen. 1:29) -- they were able to increase their population, sophistication, and domesticated civilization. China was once one of the great realms on par with ancient Egypt, Sumer, and the Indus Valley civilizations. All of them were rooted in the teaching and help of devas according to their history and lore.

This proves there is no "Bigfoot," but it does not explain the ancient lore from India (yaksha) to China (yeren) to Indonesia (orang pendek) to Siberia (Mountain Man) to Bhutan (yeti)

Our Yosemite-Yeti Expedition
Pat Macpherson (Wisdom Quarterly)

Team WQ spent an extended Father's Day weekend on safari in the northern highlands of Yosemite National Park and the desolate desert lowlands (where they are also sometimes spotted) of Mono Lake.

They aren't far apart as the crow flies, but there is a steep altitude drop off from one to the other. The Tenaya Lake region is an alpine granite wonderland.

We were headed for Cloud's Rest. And while it seemed clear that Earthbound-devas (bhumi-devas or woodland fairies) were all about, we could locate no trace of Sasquatch, the abominable California yeti (yakshi) of indigenous Californian and Buddhist lore.

T

he most famous yeti or yakkha in Buddhism is Alavaka (as recorded in the "Inspired Utterances," Ud. VI, 1). His description makes it clear that while he might have been a cross bred cannibal, he was powerful, intelligent, and possessed supernormal abilities.

Our "sightings" of flora and fauna were just black bears, massive redwood trees, and a certain father's prank.

We did see how the Native Americans lived, particularly the local Paiute, who now have their own museum exhibit at Mono Lake and a strange relationship with brine-shrimp-flies.