The Legendary Lady White Snake

[Randy W]

From maneater to star-crossed lover, the legendary Lady White Snake has become one of Chinese literature’s most versatile — and unlikely — heroines. The one thing she is not, however, is docile.

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The Snake in China’s Literary Garden
From maneater to star-crossed lover, Lady White Snake has become one of Chinese literature’s most versatile — and unlikely — heroines. The one thing she is not, however, is docile.

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The story of the White Snake has many variations, but the version known to most contemporary Chinese goes something like this: After thousands of years of Taoist training, a white snake spirit gains the ability to transform into a beautiful young woman. In her new body, Lady White Snake falls in love with the dashing scholar Xu Xian and the pair quickly marry. During the Dragon Boat Festival, the spirit is tricked into consuming realgar wine, revealing her true form to a terrified Xu, who promptly dies from fright.

Distraught, Lady White Snake steals a magic herb that can bring the dead back to life and uses it to resurrect her husband. Believing that the union of humans and demons violates heavenly law, the monk Fahai forcibly separates the couple and takes a revived Xu Xian to Jinshan Temple. To rescue her husband, Lady White Snake floods the nearby mountains. Ultimately, however, the monk traps her in Leifeng Pagoda on the banks of West Lake in the eastern city of Hangzhou.
The evolution of the White Snake legend into something approximating a bittersweet story of star-crossed lovers is a recent development, but hardly unprecedented. The tale has always been adjusted to fit the morals and desires of contemporary audiences.