Jiutian Xuannü
Jiutian Xuannü (九天玄女; "Mysterious Lady of the Nine Heavens") is identified as the same as Doumu in the esoteric teachings of Taoism. She represents the mother of the immortal "red infant" Dao enshrined at the centre of the human body. This links her directly to the myths about the birth and initiation of Laozi and the Yellow Emperor.
↻ synthesized from 4 sources
When
- First attested
- 1122 BCE
- Attested period
- -1122 – 2020
- Historical notes
- Attested by Ge Hong.
Relationships
- syncretized with
- Dǒumǔ, Lishan Laomu
- co occurs with
- Xuanwu, Six Jia Generals, Queen Mother of the West, Western Mother, Nuwa, Wusheng Laomu, Doumu Yuanjun, Taiyi Yuanjun, Xiwangmu, Jinling Shengmu
- sibling of
- Sunü
- enemy of
- Chiyou
- allied with
- Huangdi
- served by
- Six Ding Jade Maidens, Jade Maiden of Dingmao, Jade Maiden of Dingsi, Jade Maiden of Dinghai, Jade Maiden of Dingyou, Jade Maiden of Dingwei, Jade Maiden of Dingchou, Governor of Destiny, Governor of the Registers
- student of
- Xiwangmu
Mentioned by
Sources
Source passages
“In the esoteric teachings of Taoism she is identified as the same as Jinling Shengmu, Jiutian Xuannü (九天玄女; "Mysterious Lady of the Nine Heavens") and Xiwangmu (西王母; "Queen Mother of the West"), representing the mother of the immortal "red infant" (赤子; chìzǐ) Dao enshrined at the centre of the human body.”
#15735 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“The goddess Jiutian Xuannü was actively worshiped by the ancient Chinese, but the extent of the worship diminished after the Han dynasty. Over the following centuries, she was gradually assimilated into Daoism.”
#21393 · extracted by anthropic/claude-sonnet-4.5
“She was also mentioned as an authority ruling over other divinities such as Jiutian Xuannü, a goddess of war and sex.”
#21587 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001
“She is often confused or equated with other deities such as Queen Mother of the West (Wangmu Niangniang), Wusheng Laomu, Doumu Yuanjun, Taiyi Yuanjun (Xuan Miao Yuniang), and Jiutian Xuannü. Alternatively, she might be considered a deity derived from the evolution of their divine attributes.”
#29659 · extracted by google/gemini-2.0-flash-001