If you missed my last Gods of Smite article on Heimdallr, you can find it here.
Today I am again doubling up. Neither Jing Wei nor Xing Tian have a lot of information for me to find so rather than a very short article, I am putting them together. I have to say that Jing Wei’s art is beautiful. Soft and dreamy is what I see most. At least the more modern art is, the old images are still beautiful but don’t have the same colors that we do today. Without further ado, let me introduce you to them.
Jing Wei is a Chinese goddess who drowned as a mortal and was elevated to a goddess after she died. Her name means “Spirit Guardian.” Her mortal name was Nu Wa, not related to the Nu Wa I covered in this series. Nu Wa was playing in the Eastern Sea and sadly drowned. Nu Wa’s body was never found. Her father was shattered and vowed to find her body.
Jing Wei’s father, Yan Di was the Yan Emperor, also known as the Flame Emperor. I can’t find anything about her mother, sibling, or a consort though I doubt she had one because she was focused on her mission and was a bird as opposed to a woman.
When Nu Wa drowned, she morphed into a bird and her mission became to fill the sea with sticks and stones so no one else could befall the same fate. When others died in the same fashion they became known as jingweis after Jing Wei. They are considered not quite ghosts nor are they undead. They are more like the phoenix but with the purpose of filling the sea. Jing Wei shows a laser-focused purpose and continues to this day in that purpose.
We are also meeting Xing Tian, the headless Chinese god. He is also known as Hsing Tian. Xing Tian didn’t start as headless, though, he lost it in his rebellion against the Supreme Deity. When he lost his head, he used his nipples as eyes and his belly button as a mouth. That would be terrifying to see. He is a god of incredible strength and courage.
Yan Di knew Xing Tian too. Xing Tian was an official in Yan Di’s army who was fighting to become the Supreme Deity. Eventually, he lost to Huang Di, who was the Yellow Emperor or the Yellow Thearch, but Xing Tian continued to fight even after the defeat. Eventually, Huang Di beheaded Xing Tian for his insolence. He lost his head with his shield and battle axe in his hands and got up to continue to fight using his nipples and belly button as I described earlier. He eventually grew back his head but he would be scary to see until then. Even after all that he continued to rebel. His head is buried in the Chang Yang Mountains. They are also called the Chung-Yung Range.
As you can see, both deities have incredible perseverance. Even with all life has thrown at me, I don’t know if I can claim that amount of singleness of purpose. Jing Wei must know that filling the sea is a useless venture by now but she and the other jingwei continue. Xing Tian kept fighting no matter what. You would think that losing your head was a good signal to stop but no, not him. Both continue to be in Chinese culture.
Have you heard about Xing Tian or Jing Wei before this? Or have you played either of them in Smite? What do you think of them? Either their mythology or in the game. Let me know in the comments below. Until next time, have fun storming the castle!
