Choose how the Mid-Autumn Festival story ends – was Chang’e selfish or selfless?
The tale of Chang’e’s ascent to the moon is one long associated with the Mid-Autumn Festival, but there are many versions of this Chinese legend. Here are two that have been widely told – and you get to choose how they end.
Many moons ago, it was said that there were 10 suns and they each took turns travelling across the sky. One day, the suns decided to rebel and they all came out at the same time.
The suns scorched the Earth so much that the planet was left in a permanent drought, crops withered and died, humans faced the possibility of dying out completely and there was no evening.
A brave and valiant archer named Hou Yi was called upon by the Emperor of Heaven to save the planet. Raising his bow and arrow to the suns, he shot nine of the suns – leaving one to rise and set – saving the planet and human life.
He was hailed as a hero and the Queen Mother of the West, a goddess also known as Xiwangmu, gifted him the elixir of immortality.
The prized bottle contained just enough elixir for one person, and Hou could not bear the thought of leaving his beloved and beautiful wife, Chang’e, behind for eternity. He made the difficult decision to stay mortal, and hid the elixir under his bed.
On one fateful day – August 15 on the lunar calendar – something happened that changed their lives forever.
Read More at https://multimedia.scmp.com/infographics/culture/article/3189752/mid-autumn-festival/index.html