

When it was found out, it was punished by a spanking from the Jade Emperor. One story of the Pixiu says that it violated a law of Heaven by defecating on the floor of Heaven. In the Eastern Han dynasty, pixiu were thought to be able to fly into the realm of immortals or xian by Daoists and a minority of Confucianists.

Imperial Pixiu used during the Qing dynasty developed the physical characteristic of a fatter, more rotund body, indicating a stomach that could be loaded with unlimited amounts of gold and all forms of wealth and good fortune.ĭue to their similar appearances, Pixiu are often confused with stone lions and qilin, but they can easily be distinguished from those two animals by its pair of feathered wings with which it can fly between Heaven and Earth. Many have a bifurcated (split) tail that hangs low and downward that covers its rear, a representative metaphor that they hold gold inside their stomachs but will not let it out. There is one ancient stone sculpture variation found with hooves, but all Pixiu have wings. Pixiu have protruding eyes and sharp teeth. As with the Chinese phoenix, the common image today represents a single gender with one antler (male).

Īncient Chinese descriptions, depictions and stone carvings of Pixiu from the Han Dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) show the male with a single antler and the female with two. In modern times, this legendary creature’s historical physical appearance has been somewhat lost, and is now more commonly depicted with only one antler. They have the head of a Chinese dragon, the body of a lion, and historically sport on their heads either one antler (male) or two antlers (female). Their legend has been passed down through 2,000 years of Chinese lore. Pixiu are auspicious, winged animals, written about in ancient Chinese history and heralded through the millennia by fantastic stories of powerful and grandiose feats of victory in battle. Today, Pixiu are a popular design on jade pendants. Statues of this creature are often used to attract wealth in feng shui. Pixiu crave the smell of gold and silver and like to bring their masters money in their mouth. Displaying Tiānlù at home or in the office is said to prevent wealth from flowing away. When it returns to its master's house, the Bìxié is then said to guard the riches. It is said to go out into the world to search for gold and other forms of wealth.
